


Gravitational

by Anita_Deity, Avivi, Kae_the_Minish_Bandit, swiperade, Sylveondream



Category: Linked Universe - Fandom, The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms
Genre: Angst, Head Injury, Hurt/Comfort, If you came here to have a nice time you came to the wrong place, Injury, Linked Universe (Legend of Zelda), Near Drowning, Past Torture, Prompt Fill, Someone dies in the third prompt D:
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-01
Updated: 2020-11-11
Packaged: 2021-03-09 02:02:26
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 6,216
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27286870
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anita_Deity/pseuds/Anita_Deity, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Avivi/pseuds/Avivi, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kae_the_Minish_Bandit/pseuds/Kae_the_Minish_Bandit, https://archiveofourown.org/users/swiperade/pseuds/swiperade, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sylveondream/pseuds/Sylveondream
Summary: Sometimes the sheer gravity of a situation is enough to make us fall.(A collection of angsty™ prompt-fills from 6 different creators in an autumnal experiment!)
Comments: 9
Kudos: 45





	1. Credits

This is a crazy idea for a prompt-fill collection that started with Sylveondream sending in a couple of prompt lists from Tumblr to the LU Discord creator's lounge. It spiraled into a collaboration and here we are! Updates will come whenever one of us writes out a prompt-fill (and who knows how many there will be total).

The prompts will vary from hurt/comfort to more extreme scenarios, but we will include Trigger Warnings at the begining of each chapter so that people can easily avoid certain topics if they wish to. 

Thank you to prompt-dealer and snake-noodles on Tumblr for the prompt lists!

Links: 

<https://prompt-dealer.tumblr.com/post/614052132384112640/50-angsty-questions-prompt-list>

<https://snake-noodles.tumblr.com/post/187308528777/235-angsthorror-prompts>


	2. "Please don't touch me"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> First and Wind!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Trigger Warnings:** past descriptions of torture and injury

He should have known that his time in prison would lead to physiological trauma, he should have known that he wouldn't walk out of that cell without something triggering the memories of his imprisonment. When the young sailor had only hardly touched his arm, he was sent back to the time when the guards had broken his arm over and over again. They would wait for it to be close enough to healing before they would break it again, his arm was so injured that it was damaged beyond repair.

Yet he had told no one, no one back home knows of his injury and he had preferred it that way. What kind of hero would he be if everyone knew that his arm was broken beyond repair? That he couldn't even hold his sword anymore in that arm? No, that's why he remained silent, and it had worked until a strange portal had opened up and pulled him into a strange journey with future reincarnations of himself. 

They all looked up at him and admired him for what he had done. He can't lose that admiration just because his left arm hung limply to his side and was partially useless to him at this point. 

"First?" He was brought back from his thoughts at the sound of the sailor's question. He looked at the young hero with uncertainty. 

"Are you ok?"

During his panic, he had subconsciously grabbed his arm and held it protectively against his side and faced his body away from Wind. First let out a breath that he didn't know he was holding, he forced himself to relax and let go of his arm. Smiling, he raised his uninjured arm and placed it on Wind's head ruffling it a bit as he forced out a laugh. 

"I'm fine sailor, just." He smiled as much as he could in hopes that it would fool the other that he was ok. 

"Please don't touch me." 


	3. Hey, hey… it’s okay to cry

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There's a loneliness to the night
> 
> Four and Twi!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> From Snake-Noodles on Tumblr (179): “Hey, hey… it’s okay to cry. Let it all out.”

It was a quiet night. After a long day of travel, the heroes had been quick to set up camp and go to bed. Four had handed his shift off to Twilight over an hour ago, so by all means he should have been asleep by now. Unfortunately, certain parts of Four had decided that the middle of the night was the best time to have a conversation.

_Hypothetically speaking, if we were to take the gust jar and force it against a wall, how long do you think it would take until the pressure built to the point of us being forced back?_

_Vio. It’s three in the fucking morning. Stop. Let me sleep._

_Actually, wait. That sounds cool! How far do you think it would push us back?_

_Don’t you start too._

_But now I want to know!_

_So help me, Red, I swear to Hylia. Green, stop them._

_...well, we can’t exactly do this against a wall, with us being in a forest and all. Now a tree, that could work._

_GREEN._

_WHAT?_

_I TRUSTED YOU._

_You trusted poorly, then._

_Sooooooo majority vote says that we can do the experiment. Right now._

_Excellent. Let’s grab the jar and go._

Mind made up (or being forced into the three am experiment), Four reached into his bag and pulled out the gust jar. Scientific progress, after all, waits for no one, and seventy-five percent of him needed the answer to the question far more than sleep.

Four slowly made his way to the edge of camp, carefully sidestepping Legend and Hyrule who were asleep next to where he had been. As he drew closer to where Twilight was, he noticed that something was...off about him. He was hunched over slightly, staring out into the woods from his spot by a tree. Not to mention that he actually wasn’t taking watch in his wolf form, which he always claimed to be far superior in its ability to detect threats. 

Reaching Twilight’s side, the dim light of the fire revealed the somber look on Twilight’s face, from the downturned lips to the redness around his eyes.

_Uh...whelp. What are we supposed to do about this?_

_Oh noooooo. Has he been crying? You guys! We have to help him!_

_Would he even be okay with that? I mean, I want to but---_

_He_ is _the type to redirect the concern back to us. Still we should at least try._

With the colors in complete agreement, he cleared his throat. “Twi?”

Twilight startled, straightening and turning fully in Four’s direction.

“Ah. I didn’t realize that any of y’all were still up. You should’ve been asleep for a while by now. What’s got ya up?”

_Idiot._

_Called it._

_Be nice._

_Let’s wait and turn it back to him._

“Just my own thoughts. You know how it is; random ideas and what-ifs.”

Twilight glanced at the white and blue jar. Four shifted it in his hands before holding it out to Twilight. He nodded as Twi took it, taking a seat with his back against the bark as he was joined by the other.

“A hypothesis in need of testing, really. Rather dumb, all things considered.”

“Oh? What was the hypothesis?”

“Well, the experiment largely focuses on generating bursts of air in an enclosed space and then observing how the overall force distribution changes over time.” _Vio focus_. “But that doesn’t matter. You, on the other hand, appear to have something a lot more important on your mind.”

Gust jar in hand, Twilight froze for a second before giving a slight shake of his head at Four’s comment.

“Oh, and what makes ya think that? I’m awake because of my watch.” He rotated the jar around several times before lifting it in Four’s direction. “And I’m _thinking_ about how a jar of all things has ya up so late.”

Four gave Twilight a deadpan look. “You can try to pull that with the others, but not with me. Your tells are ridiculously easy to read once you know them.”

Twilight sighed, caught in his redirecting act with no way out. He sat, searching for the words to begin to give coherent form to his own thoughts.

“There's a sort of loneliness to this time of night. When everyone around you is asleep and it’s just you and your own mind.” His expression turned wistful. “Sometimes it makes me think of those who live in the dark of the night...or the twilight so to speak. Those who we can’t, for some inexplicable reason, keep in our lives.”

Knowing people from the dark that had ultimately left. Well, was that not a commonality between them.

“I can think of someone like that too. As dear and near to me as my own shadow...though the ability to truly be near to each other has changed.” Then, with eyes flashing violet, “It doesn’t do well to dwell on that.”

Twilight gave a slight smile. “That it doesn’t. Sometimes it just happens though, and I just think about how much I miss her. She encouraged me in her own way, and I’d like to think that we were good friends in the end.”

Four shifted and grabbed Twilight’s arm, dragging them closer together. The rancher slouched against him, losing the fight against the weight of his emotions.

“I’m sure you were. You certainly are a good friend. You’re always there for us when we need a shoulder to cry on. Sure, sometimes it’s as Wolfie, but you’re always willing to listen. So let me do the same for you, just this once.”

“I _miss_ her. We were always together and---” tears filled his voice. “And she--”

“Hey, hey… it’s okay to cry. Let it all out. You don’t have to say anything if it hurts too much.”

Twilight’s shoulders were wracked with sobs as he buried his face into Four’s chest. Maybe more words could have been said in comfort. Maybe, just maybe, they could have talked about the ones they had lost. But for now, this was okay. This simplest form of catharsis, with only the moon as a witness to their shared sorrow.


	4. Colors in an Empty Space

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I'm pretty sure the prompt meant blood, but since blood is nasty [citation not needed, I ain't writing about blood. ew], I went with this instead. 
> 
> Prompt: "Aw, you look so lovely in red~"
> 
> tw for major character death

It's the middle of a battle.

They're fighting wizzrobes. So many wizzrobes. An army of them, to be honest. In a variety of colors, they face them head on. It's the least they can do for a kingdom that's shattered, ripped, and mangled their very soul. A soul that countless others share and yet don't.

They live with it.

Swinging the sword they forged so many years ago- _Orwasitreallythatlongago?Somehowidoubtit.Noreallyhowlongagowasit?IsitabadthingimunsureYesitis.Wasntitliketwoyearsago?_

They've cut down so many so far, but the enemies are endless. Some summon minions to do the dirty work, while others simply rain fire upon them.

They face a larger, darker one, who is expelling balls of dark energy. Each devouring anything it touches. They step forward to face their opponent, with all the courage they can muster.

_Weareaheroofcourage,afterall! Butwerealsotheonlyonetoneverhavethetriforceofcourage!Werestillheroesright?Imactuallynotsure.Wecantbeheroesifioughtwithganon.Andhaveyouheardwhattheysayaboutus?_

The wizzrobe in question hurls sphere after sphere.

They expertly dodge it time and time again. This goes on for what seems like years, but it's best not to judge by their internal clock. It's been thrown out of whack by the Purple one's insomnia.

It becomes exhausting. Darting left and right and left again is repetitive at best, and adding monsters into the mix somehow makes it more monotonous. It's a pattern that they follow until they don't.

The wizzrobe notices their stupor and stops the pattern immediately. They don't notice, they continue dodging non-existent dark magic.

The magic is being charged. It's growing stronger until it can't grow stronger. The pure volume of this ball would be frightening to anyone who had the vaguest concept of magic.

They still remain oblivious.

Their companions would be concerned, but they are too busy with their own enemies to notice. The first is battling one summoning endless zombies. The ageless one fights one with electrical powers. The farmer and the untamable battle side by side. It's an ice wizzrobe that tries to match their raw strength. Likewise, the veteran and the traveler fight the horde of bokoblins one has summoned while the sailor shoots the wizzrobe summoning them from afar. The captain is nowhere to be found.

The dark magic is tossed in the air and time seems to slow down as it pivots towards them. In that moment, they realize what fools they've been. They attempt to move out of the way-

_Ohbythetrhreehowdidwenotnoticethat??Weneedtomove_ **_now_!** _YeahigotthatpartBlue.Whatisthatthinggoingtodowithus?Howamisupposedtoknow?Itwasaretoricalquestion!_

They try to move, but their limbs don't respond. They watch in horror as it plummets down at them.

When it reaches them, they are lifted into the air. All forms of consciousness cease. The magic is absorbed into their chest.

They float down gently.

It didn't seem to affect them in any way, save changing the quadrant of their tunic that was previously Red into an ashen gray.

And it's quiet. Without the chatty voice of the Red one, it's far too quiet. Instead of moaning or stopping their fight, they attack harder. With all they have.

It's scary how one so short can have such unbridled rage, but they see no problem. All they notice is their lost brother.

The glue binding them together.

Then it's not quiet anymore.

“Aw, why red is such a lovely color on you!” sarcasm is the veteran's specialty, and he notices them for the first time in the fight, and yet all he sees is the slightly different coloring of their tunic.

He doesn't notice the grim determination etched on their face.

He doesn't notice the pale hue of their skin, the weariness that comes with bags under their eyes.

He doesn't notice the absence of the regular red highlights in the rainbow of their eyes, or the pure fury burning within.

It's fine.

_NoitsnotItoldyoutheydidntcarePleasejuststopsowecanfocusonthefightButthisisthefight-_

It's all a joke to him, to the veteran. Just a comment that his shirt looks weird, nothing more. It truly runs so much deeper than that.

Without the Red one, they're empty. They are just a shell, a husk masquerading as the smithy.

But did the smithy ever even exist? 'He's' just a mask they've put on to hide their fragmented mess of a soul.

Even if they do love them, as they always say whenever any of them feel down, they love that idealized version of 'him'.

They realize this and immediately freeze. They've known all along that creating this persona would lead to eventual disappointment.

This was the true moment of realization.

It's cut short by the swing of an axe. It strikes them in the shoulder, and they're falling. Not gently, like before. Heavily.

The _chink_ they hear signifies to them that they got hit where they had a bit of metal plating under their tunic. It’s lucky for them and yet unlucky. Despite the lack of being sliced, the sheer force of the hit is what makes them fall.

They see the traveler let out a scream at the view of them getting hit, but they're smiling serenely.

No need to wait to see the red one again. They can see him right now.

_Noonecaresifweregone.Werejustbrokenanyway.Notlikeanyoneknowsoursecret.Noonecanknow!Nooneeverwillknow.Werejustanothercasualtyafterall._

The veteran blames himself for the smithy's destruction. He's still curious about the tunic and who exactly he fought in the palace where the sword of the four had once been enshrined, but he puts his queries aside in his grief.

A little red ghost wonders where his brothers are. You can hear his wails if you walk through this field at precisely one in the afternoon. None who can see him have the heart to tell him the fate of his brothers.

They really _do_ look good in red.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you wanted something happy you came to the wrong place! :D
> 
> p.s. being vague is fun


	5. They hate me don't they?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pre calamity wild and Warriors bonding time!
> 
> a continuation of https://archiveofourown.org/works/26846872

It had been a week since the young knight, Wild had been with them and they'd figured out some things about him. 

Like how very stoic the young lad was compared to his older self who was way more expressive. Where the older Wild would jump at a chance to have fun, this younger one would sit back and watch them from a respectable distance. He wouldn't join them unless he was told to, and when he did he was stiff as if he didn't know how to do the things that were asked of him. 

That part was worrying for the others and Warriors as well. The captain could tell how anxious the young knight was despite him trying to suppress it whenever Warriors and him were alone. 

The ever smallest flinch when Warriors would call out to him or the stiffness in his body when Warriors ask him to do something. The most concerning thing about the boy, however, was his muteness. Not one word came out of him since they rescued him from his Hyrule. True the kid did scream in fright when Legend threw him at the portal and cried out in pain when the knight hit his head but other than that he hadn't uttered a single word to any of them. The most the kid ever did was signed but even that was minimal. 

Warriors could tell that it was bothering the old man who tried and failed to get the kid to talk. The others tried to get him to communicate with them but even that had been futile. 

Warriors sighed and ran a hand through his hair, it was his turn to keep an eye on the camp while everyone else slept and so far things had gone smoothly. 

That is until his ears caught the faintest sound of whimpering.

Warriors had looked around the camp for the source of the noize when they landed on the kid. His sleeping bag was away from everybody else despite everyone telling the kid that sleeping close to them would ensure his safety at night. Yet the kid had ignored it and signed for them that he was capable on his own, which wasn’t a far cry but still it had made them worry. 

As quietly as he could, the captain marched his way to the kid until he was next to his bedroll. Being this close to him Warriors could see that the kid was shaking, he was gripping his covers for dear life and every sound that the kid made broke his heart. 

Carefully, he placed his hand on the kid’s arm and gently shook the kid awake. The kid woke up with a gasp and looked around desperately what had woken him. The young knight’s blue eyes landed on the captain and he had relaxed at the sight of him. Yet Warriors could still tell that something was bothering the kid. 

“Hey, you alright kid?” 

The kid nodded his head and brought his hands to begin to sign but his hands were still shaking from the nightmare and it made it hard for the young knight to say what he wanted to say. 

_ I’m fine captain  _

“You sure kid? That looked like a nasty nightmare you were having.” Goddesses, he wishes that the kid would talk and just tell him what's wrong but one step at a time. However, it seems that this is where the kid had stopped cause the young knight had looked away and quickly signed.

_ yes _ . 

The captain sighed in defeat, he knew that making the kid talk was useless, he’s not even that good at comforting others like Time and Twilight were. Getting up to go back to his post, he stopped however when he heard a hoarse voice greet his ears. 

“They hate me don’t they?” 

Warriors turned around to see young Wild up and hugging his knees, blue eyes glistening with unshed tears. Warriors was too stunned that young Wild had talked to notice that he had asked him a question. Shaking himself out of his stupor, Warriors walked up to the knight and sat next to him while the young knight flinched at how close the captain was; he didn’t stop Warriors from sitting next to him. Warriors took that as a good sign to continue. 

“Who are they, kid?” 

The kid was silent for a few heartbeats, uncertainty clear in his body language. He was so quiet that he barely heard the kid talk again and he had to strain his ears to listen to what the kid had said. 

“You guys.” 

Warriors looked at the kid in disbelief. Them hating him? Why in Hyila’s name would he think that? Sure they might get frustrated with him from time to time but they didn’t hate him. He sighed, hesitantly wrapping an arm around the young knight’s shoulder. 

“Now why would you think that, kid?” 

“Cause everyone back home hates me, especially the rest of the soldiers, what makes you guys any different than them?” Well, he wasn't prepared for that. Warriors raised an eyebrow at that, his people hated the kid? Goddess the knight was just a kid trying his best. It's not like he could do more than what was asked of them, unfortunately, it seemed that the kid didn’t have anyone back home to lean on and that made him feel saddened by the kid’s situation. 

“Well for one, we watch each other’s back, and no one is left on their one for one second.” He hugged the kid tightly, enough to get the young knight to look up at him. 

“But most importantly, we are family. Every last one of us from, the sailor to the old man.” Warriors looked at the kid with a stern expression, hoping that the kid understood what he was saying. When the kid didn’t say anything he took that as his permission to continue. 

“All of us have gone through different experiences of hardships in our lives but that doesn't make us unworthy of finding a family.” He stopped when he heard the sound the kid sniffled and looked back down to see the kid angrily trying to wipe the tears from his eyes. 

He sighed and only hugged the kid tighter when the young knight continued to cry, _the_ _ poor kid  _ he thinks. Was there really no one back home that cared for the kid? Well if there wasn’t it's a good thing that they took him from the kid’s Hyrule. 

“Let it out kid, it's alright.” He supposed that the effects of the nightmare and the uncertain feelings the kid had; must've gotten to a breaking point, cause the kid hugged him tighter and cried into his chest. 

As the kid continued to cry into his chest, Warriors realized that they needed to call the kid something. They can’t just call him Wild 2.0 or Fire hazard that one belongs to the other Wild. Warriors could feel the kid slowly begin to calm down and soon the kid was fast asleep leaning onto Warriors, the kid was still clinging on to him but he didn’t mind. 

Draping his blue scarf over the kid, he made sure that the young knight was comfortable before laying him back down on his bedroll. Gently brushing the kid’s hair away from the young knight's face, he smiled. When it dawned on him, the kid said that he was a royal soldier, correct? Well in that case he has the perfect name for the kid. 

Before leaving the kid alone and going back to his post he whispered.

“Night Ray, I hope you have a good night’s sleep.” 


	6. Do you understand what you've done?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Part of growing up is making mistakes, but learning from them makes us all the better.
> 
> Or, in which Wind runs off on his own in a fight and has a not good time as a result.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> From Prompt Dealer on Tumblr (36): “Do you understand what you’ve done?”
> 
> TW: near drowning, concussion

It wasn’t often that the group of heroes could say that they actually had a solid inventory’s worth of supplies. All too often did life turn into the single question of why there never seemed to be enough bottles to hold potions or water or  _ special  _ water from the base of a mountain.

The most recent portal had deposited them on the outskirts of a village, where they had been able to restock most of their supplies. It took a little bit of bartering on their part, with the exception of Wild who just flat out paid the full price with his seemingly endless supply of rupees (“I’m not going to skimp out when getting ingredients you guys”), but in the end they could safely say that they were prepared as they ever were for whatever battle awaited them.

Talk from the villagers had directed them towards a rumored monster camp that was just over a day’s walk away through the river valley. They were reaching the end of the trip when they started to hear a cacophony from further up the path.

“Think that’s the camp?” Legend asked with a raised eyebrow, nodding in the direction of the sound.

“It would seem so,” Time answered. “Look there,” he pointed towards a dip in the canyon wall. “Slightly hidden but still close enough to the path to snag the unfortunate traveler.”

“We’ll have to be careful going in. With the river and all we can’t surprise them from behind.” Warriors surveyed the group before seemingly coming to a conclusion. “They’ll see us soon as we turn the corner, so we’ll need to hit them hard and fast. Time, Twi, Sky, and I will lead the charge. Wild and Legend, once we break through the first wall, back us up from a distance.”

“And the rest of us?” Wind asked, eager to set the plan in motion.

“The rest of you will act as a sort of second wave of the attack. Stay close. We’re going in blind. The only thing we know is that there are a lot of them.” 

With everyone aware of the plan, Warriors strode forward, slowly raising his hand to the level of his head to bring them to a stop when they reached the curve in the wall. The elders of the group closed in next to him before sprinting into the camp at Wars’ signal.

Immediately, sounds of fighting broke out. Wild and Legend rounded the corner and took up stances on either side of the path, cutting off one of the escape routes for the monsters.

“Wave two!” Warriors shouted. “We were right about there being a lot of them. Lizalfos! Infected at that!”

At his words, Hyrule, Four, and Wind raced to join the fight. The first group of fighters had been scattered across the campground, each fighting off vicious hits from their combatants. 

Wind readied his sword and quickly blocked a strike from the first lizalfos he encountered. It jumped back a bit before moving forward again with a quick jab of its spear. He dodged the attack, sidestepping to catch the tail end of the creature with his blade. It shrieked and lunged once more; this time Wind was able to counter the attack before looping his sword back around to end the creature’s life.

He flung the blood off of the metal, looking around for the next enemy to fight. Further ahead of him was a lone lizalfos. It stared at Wind, tilting its head slightly as its tongue slithered out. It then turned and started running towards the water.

“Oh no you don’t!” Wind cried out as he immediately started pursuing it.

“Wind, wait!” Warriors yelled, only for his yell to be lost in the fight. “Stay close to us!” He quickly exchanged a glance with Time before fighting his own lizalfos with more ferocity in an attempt to end the fight and get to Wind.

Wind continued after the lizalfos, ignoring the cursing coming from behind him as the others were forced to watch from their own fights as he broke formation and went off on his own.

He ran the distance to catch up to the beats; as he drew closer to the river, he readied his sword. The lizalfos stopped in its retreat and spun around once more to face him. Somehow this lizalfos seemed bigger than the others, staring at him with a glint in its eyes.

Moving faster that it had previously, it ran up to him and immediately slashed at his arm, blood quickly rising from the cut.  _ Shit _ . He raised his sword to block another strike, being forced back by the sheer strength of the attack. He had to end the fight now before it could get the upper hand.

In a gamble, Wind dove under the lizalfos, slashing up as he slid under it to come to stand in the shallows of the river. To his surprise, his sword had barely pierced the flesh of the monster, not detering it in the slightest.

The lizalfos overcame him, and he lost his footing on the moss covered rocks of the riverbed. Wind slammed into the water, head bouncing off of a rock as his vision flashed white. He tried to push himself out of the current, only to be forced down again by the monster’s foot.

The water had always been his home. He grew up running on the beach with Aryll following after him, laughing as they compared all of the shapes of the shells brought in by the waves. The ocean taught him how to sail, how to fight, and how to vanquish a demon king. 

He struggled, head flaring at every move as he kicked and flailed his arms at the monster holding him down. The force on his chest didn’t let up no matter how hard he tried, however, and he laid there, brackish water swirling through his hair.

The water had been there throughout his life, and now it would see him to the end of it. All of his efforts, everything he did to make himself a hero, it all ended here. No one was here to save him. The white in his vision gradually became overcome with black as he tried not to take a breath, tried not to let the water in, oxygen running out.

There was a sudden flash of blue in the hazy collection of shapes above him, and the pressure lifted.

The water was no longer his grave. He vaulted out of the river, tears and droplets covering his face as he frantically gasped for air, head spinning from it.

He looked up to see Warriors standing over the remnants of the lizalfos. Wars sheathed his sword before quickly stepping to Wind’s side. “Are you okay? How long were you under there for?”

“I-I’m fine. I didn’t,” another gasp for air, “breath in any water so I’m good.”

“Good?” Warriors questioned. “No, it got your arm pretty  _ good _ . Here, let me help.”

He pulled Wind to his feet, frowning as Wind stumbled a bit before seemingly regaining his balance.

“I don’t know how long you were under the surface, but we should look you over and at least get that arm fixed up. You at least seem a bit dizzy from oxygen deprivation, though not actually inhaling water is good.”

They made their way closer to the others, Wind somehow managing to stay upright as his feet seemed to move independent of one another.

“Here, let’s look at that arm of yours.” They sat down as Warriors reached into his pack to pull out bandages and a potion. Warriors glanced towards the others before making eye contact with Time, whose eyes shone briefly with relief before hardening as he moved to make his way to the two of them.

When he reached them, Time looked over Wind, surveying his arm and overall drenched state.

“Do you understand what you’ve done?”

Wind startled, head pounding as he briefly raised it to look at Time.

“I-”

“Old man,” Warriors cut in. “Now isn’t the time.” He stood to continue conversing as Wind’s thoughts started to drift.

“Isn’t it? He should have been more careful, and he certainly should not have run off. Injuries like this could easily have been prevented by listening to the plan and actually following it. Now we’re down a potion for carelessness.” 

“And he knows that, but right now we should just focus on patching him up. He’s lucky he didn’t drown. Had I been any later in getting to him...”

“Exactly. Lucky. He needs to understand that being young doesn’t excuse being stupid.”

Wind fully snapped to attention at Time’s words, pain and anger both flaring up as he pushed himself to his feet.  _ Being young doesn’t excuse being stupid. Was that all they saw him as? Young? An idiot? _

“I’m right here! You don’t have to talk about me like I’m some  _ child _ . I’m a hero too.” His words started to slur together as he started swaying back and forth, “And I made it...I made it so I...I...”

The vitriol in his words faded out into incoherent stuttering. Time and Warriors both straightened up where they had been standing.

“Wind, look at me,” Time commanded, moving to be directly in front of him.

He squinted up at Time’s face before glancing away. Sunlight reflected off of Time’s armor, making it too bright for Wind to look at for more than a second. 

Alarmed, Time reached out and gently lifted Wind by his chin as he looked at his eyes. “Did you hit your head?”

“What?” he trailed off again before being gently shaken by Time. “No, I just fell into the water.”

Still looking at his face, Time started to move his hands around the sides of Wind’s head in search of a wound as Warriors watched on in worry. “Are you sure?”

“I just  _ said  _ you don’t have to treat me like I’m a  _ kid _ .” At these words Wind pulled himself away, only to immediately stumble at the lack of support.

Warriors looked at Time’s hands that had been left open from where he had been holding Wind, noticing what the river water had been hiding all along. “Shit, is that blood?” 

At this, Wind’s vision started to go black as his legs gave out under him. 

“Catch him!”

He blacked out fully, with arms catching him being the last thing he felt.

* * *

Awareness came in flashes. Being tucked close to a warm chest as they moved forward, looking for a place to settle for the night. Getting tucked into his bedroll. Concerned voices surrounding him.

When he fully came to, it was late in the night. The moon was bright overhead, and there was a quiet to the area that hadn’t been there from what he last remembered.

“You’re awake. How are you feeling?” he heard from his right.

He looked over to see Time sitting next to him, patches of gray under his eyes.

“Wha-?” He shook his head to clear his thoughts, flinching at the sudden pain at the action. “What happened?”

Time sighed, slouching where he sat. “We were dealing with a monster camp, and you wound up on your own fighting an infected lizalfos. By the time Wars got to you, it had you pinned under the water, and I’m guessing you hit your head on the riverbed at some point.”

“I...don’t really remember that.”

“That’s not surprising, you passed out not long after Wars got you out of the water. We didn’t realize you had a concussion until you collapsed. Couldn’t see the blood on the back of your head due to you being soaked. We were more worried that you had inhaled some water without realizing it.”

Wind frowned, trying to recall the events. He...remembered Time being mad at him and him being mad right back.  _ Do you understand what you’ve done? _

He didn’t remember exactly what led up to the anger, and then again what caused his own. Still, “I’m sorry.”

“For what?”

“I...went off on my own, didn’t I? You were...mad at me for something. And now I’m injured and am already wasting the potions we just got.”

“Wind, I wasn’t mad.”

At Wind’s incredulous look, Time gave a slight roll of his eyes before explaining himself.

“Okay, well I wasn’t mad about that exactly. Yes, I wish you hadn’t broken formation during the fight. It was dangerous to go off on your own, and we never quite know what to expect when facing these infected monsters.”

He slowly exhaled, Wind shifting his bedroll to move it to where his head was resting in Time’s lap.

“But I’m not mad about the potions. An injury is an injury, and injuries need to be healed. I’m more mad that we didn’t get to you in time to prevent you from getting hurt. And I’m mad at myself for not being more sensitive with what I said. To make matters worse I didn’t even make sure you were okay before yelling.”

The guilt was clear in Time’s voice. 

“Wind, you couldn’t even focus on me for more than a couple seconds at a time while we were talking. Concussions are no joke. The near drowning alone was bad enough, but add a head wound to that?”

The near drowning. The water he so loved turning against him. He shuddered at the thought of it.

Time sighed, moving his arms to close around Wind. “You know that we worry.”

Wind shook his head clear of the thoughts of the river. “I wish that you didn’t. I can take care of myself.”

“And I know that. Doesn’t mean I have to like it. We respect you, Wind. You’re just as much a hero as the rest of us. But seeing someone so young forced to fight in the same battles as us is hard. Maybe we just wish you could have the childhood that so many of us couldn’t.”

As far as Wind was concerned, his childhood had stopped as soon as he turned twelve. The only childhood he was worried about was Aryll’s. As long as she could look to the water without a worry in her mind, then he could be happy. Which sounded a lot like what the others wanted for him, no matter how unattainable it may seem.

“I guess I can understand that. Doesn’t make it any less annoying.”

Time laughed. “I bet. I know I never would have taken the concern that well at your age. Just ask Wars.”

He choked on a yawn. “What?”

“Ah. That’s a story for another time. For now, it can wait until you’ve rested up. We’ll have to wake you up every few hours to check on you, but I think you’re in the clear.”

Wind shifted, settling deeper into his bedroll as Time continued keeping watch next to him. The tide of dreams started to roll in, this time bringing the comforting darkness of rest.

“Sleep, sailor, we’ll be here when you wake up.”


End file.
